Anime about married couples is rare. Probably because most anime fans are single? Let’s just leave it at that. Today I talk about how a few shows deal with the wonderful world of marriage. (Sorry Clannad AS fans, I haven’t watched your show yet.)

Godannar

Godannar combines married life and super robots. If you ask me, super robots go well with just anything, and marriage is no exception. We have Go, a has-been pilot who’s moping about his dead girlfriend for the past 5 years, and Anna, a high school student and aspiring mech pilot. After those 5 years, Go figures out that being emo over his lost love is fruitless, so he marries Anna.

Married life starts. Anna moves in with Go, and they live inside the robot base for convenience. The problem is that Anna is still studying, and it’s important that details of her marriage don’t leak out to her school. Hence, no baby-making for these two. Anna trains to be the pilot of Neo Okusaer whilst juggling household chores and schoolwork. It’s a hard life, and Go keeps on worrying about his feisty wife–being the husband, it’s his responsibility to keep his wife safe from harm. How does he manage it if his own wife is eager to put her life on the line alongside him?

This leads to some interesting dialogue between the two as they fight the Memesis. In one episode, they blow out steam on each other, blurting out the things they hate in the other–be it indecent bathroom habits, money matters, or ugly chins–until they run out of things to say. And then they gattai and finish off the enemy. One could say that the greatest battle this couple faces is between themselves, because no episode passes by without some bickering.

At one point in the show, Anna runs away, and summons up the will to come back. A truck driver helps her, someone who has lost his family 5 years ago. “What do you think is most important between husband and wife?” Anna asks. The driver answers friendship. He explains that after being together for a long time, married couples get tired of each other, and even fight. But if husband and wife can live together as friends, there won’t be any problems. Anna takes this to heart. Love, after all, is a strong but unpredictable emotion, and it can leave just as quick as it came.

But friendship is hard to break. Throughout the course of the show, Go and Anna seem to be more like old friends than husband and wife. Perhaps it’s the lack of basic married duties? There is love, but it doesn’t feel romantic. They’re just solid, like how defenders of humanity should be.

Legend of Galactic Heroes

LOGH is pretty conservative when it comes to marriage. At least, the married ones we see on screen. (And yes, these are spoilers, so beware.)

Yang and Frederica

This has got to be one of the sweetest proposals in anime–it took years of hard work to be possible! I feel warm and fuzzy in a Library War kind of way: just like Kasahara, Frederica is inspired by her Prince Charming, and joins the force in order to be with him. Guess what, she succeeds. Frederica stays by Yang’s side through difficult times, even when her love had to go against her own father.

It was great while it lasted. Frederica can’t cook, but she tries hard… and improves little. At least she tries.

Even after getting widowed, Frederica continues her husband’s fight for democracy. Now that’s definitely something. You might say that she was merely forced into the role of a political leader, but she made her own choice in that matter. Because she’s Yang’s wife. Arguably Yoshiko Sakakibara’s strongest strong female character.

Reinhard and Hilde

This one is different. It arose from pitysex, but Reinhard, not wanting to continue the depravity of the Goldenbaum Dynasty, opted to follow through all the way. He’s really a nice guy at heart, would you believe that. Unlike Yang’s marriage, this one produced a child, which was the whole point of it.

Being Kaiser and Kaiserin, Reinhard and Hilde had little time for affection, but you can still feel a rapport between the two. It’s curt and businesslike, just as they were before they got married.

Another nice thing the marriage did was bring Reinhard and Annerose back together. All thanks to Hilde.

Wolfgang and Eva

The portrait of a perfect couple down to the impressively-executed proposal, except without children. Kinda reminds me of those fairy tales where the kind couples are always childless.

Eva is cute, and it’s clear she really loves Wolf. While I felt alarm at her little speech about hating Reuental right before her husband set out to fight his best friend, she showed a lot of maturity by accepting Felix afterwards. All is good.

The Cazellnus

Sort of like the Mittermeyers, except they’re funny and actually have children! (two pretty daughters at that). Mrs. Cazellnu is awesome and if there’s one waifu I have to pick out of LOGH, she’ll be the one. Yes, I’m a masochist.

The Keslers

Definitely the best way to meet your better half–risking your life to do your job.

The Bucocks

They stood the test of time. Alexander Bucock, a hero in every sense. *salutes*

The Langs

Third-rate Machiavellan player as he was, Heydrich Lang had what was said to be a great family life. It was so great that his wife grieved attested to his goodness through the very end. It’s disconcerting how scumbags like Heydrich could raise up loving families, though.

In Closing

Do you know other anime (aside from the aforementioned Clannad) that explore the subject of marriage in detail? Share it to me!

7 Responses to Marriage in Anime (A Godannar and LOGH post)

Currently watching Godannar which is like the greatest fucking anime ever. First 2 episodes were nonstop orgasms of awesome. The marriage aspect is fun even if a little strange, and I look forward to the things you’ve mentioned.

I don’t know if I’d say that the Kaiser’s marriage arose entirely from pitysex – I thought Hildegard felt some affection for Reinhard before he had his post-assassination-attempt breakdown. Not to say that pity didn’t come into it, though!

What struck me about the Mittermeyers’ marriage was how middle-class it was. Or maybe not even that – like how the middle class would like their marriages to be: stable, loving, really, really calm (leaving aside the childlessness). Wolfgang isn’t just from the Empire’s middle class, he seems to stand for the whole group – perhaps in contrast to Reuenthal, who’s very much the gothic aristocrat?

I thought the reason for it was pity. Reinhard was feeling lonely and vulnerable with Kircheis and Yang not being able to play wargames with him anymore, so he asked Hilde to keep him company. But I could foresee Reinhard asking for Hilde’s hand in marriage even without the deed (because, if you really can’t find a wife, then marry one whom you know would never betray you). It’s just that he had to do it earlier.

Yes, Mittermeyer is very middle-class. He knows his place! I could say that those qualities you mentioned are also ones I tend to look for in marriage.